At daybreak, the craft touched down in Yacheng.
Now that the torrential downpour had spent itself, the winds were calm and the waves still. The streets, washed clean by the rain, were spotless, as peaceful and steady as ever, as though nothing had happened.
Everything that had taken place in the storm seemed to have washed away with the water.
Except for the scarlet wastewater welling up in the storm drains and the scattered debris drifting out to sea through the runoff channels, nothing seemed amiss.
"I hear things got quite chaotic last night?"
As Lyu Yingyue stepped off the airship, she saw Tong Shan, who had been waiting for some time. The hands clasped behind his back still bore unhealed scars.
Tong Shan replied placidly, "Just a major blackout. There were losses, but nothing got out of hand."
"How is the Bureau?"
"A few minor issues, but nothing that harms the overall situation," Tong Shan answered. "Certain personnel matters will have to wait for you to decide."
"Did someone mess up?"
"Yes." Tong Shan followed behind her, pausing briefly before reminding her, "A few colleagues may no longer be able to perform their duties..."
Lyu Yingyue glanced back at him slightly, but her steps never slowed.
She continued forward.
Putting it that way was practically spelling it out.
In the Security Bureau, getting injured was everyday routine. Disabling injuries were naturally treated according to procedure, with all expenses and resources fully reimbursed; meritorious service brought commendations and stipends; and poor performance was rightfully penalized. Even if some proved to be useless freeloaders occupying space, Tong Shan, who was acting in charge of Yacheng's affairs, would never be soft-handed.
Even if someone unfortunately died in action, they were martyrs deserving immense recognition and pensions. What could possibly be unfit to say openly?
Except, of course, traitors...
"Who?"
"For now, we've confirmed Li Jingqiu, Chen Cheng, Sun Yiyi, Zhao Chengping, Feng Lingyun..." Tong Shan recited several names. "Aside from them, a few others are under suspicion. They might have been kept in the dark, but since they ignored the Bureau's regulations and committed mistakes, my recommendation is that it's best to purge them."
Upon hearing this, Lyu Yingyue froze for a second, lost in thought.
Putting the others aside, Zhao Chengping was the director of the Second Department. Over the years, though he had been greedy for power and obsessed with status, he had never caused any blunders. Who would have thought the human heart was so fragile under scrutiny?
Just a few promises from others, and he had been possessed by greed.
"What about Yu Hanguang?" Lyu Yingyue asked curiously. "I thought he might have made a move too."
"His stance was very firm. Yesterday afternoon, he was the first person to come to me and report that Zhao Chengping was compromised," Tong Shan replied. "It seems that after Master Ye knocked some sense into him last time, he grew much sharper. When maintaining order last night, he fought fearlessly and was even wounded."
Risking his life, fighting without retreat, holding the southern power plant to the death, maintaining the power supply to the city's key institutions, locked in fierce battle all night... He had almost ended up hanging on the wall.
These days, those whose stances were rock-solid and completely unshakeable were a minority after all. Aside from diehard loyalists, most people struggled to maintain their footing and allegiance when the storm rolled in.
That a fence-sitter could be so unyielding at a critical juncture truly exceeded everyone's expectations.
Even if he was a fence-sitter, he was a fence-sitter who had leaned to their side, so major commendations and rewards certainly couldn't be skipped.
"I saw in the reports that there were quite a few tough nuts to crack?" Lyu Yingyue asked.
Tong Shan's eyes lowered contemptuously, his face devoid of expression. "Just a bunch of greedy fools blinded by money. The few who popped up were dealt with along the way by Team Leader Wen. They couldn't make any real waves."
A night of turmoil had been thoroughly concealed by the storm and the curtain of night. Once daylight arrived, it was as if nothing had happened.
It was over.
Besides, even if the storm had been vast enough to swallow heaven and earth, the moment Lyu Yingyue arrived in Yacheng, it was bound to subside.
"This time in Midtown, the old men at the Bureau gave me an earful for quite a while." Lyu Yingyue walked ahead, sighing softly. "Now that the position of Warden has been made official, it's time to step down from the seat at the Yacheng Security Bureau. I pushed back the Central Bureau's arrangements, so there's still a bit of time left. Do you have any plans?"
"I'm not suitable." Tong Shan shook his head without hesitation.
Even though everyone knew he was the most suitable candidate, and during this prolonged period as acting director, he had held broad authority while the governor was incapacitated and the director was away in Midtown, keeping everything running in an orderly fashion to await Lyu Yingyue's return and takeover.
Yet unsuitable was unsuitable.
As long as he lived, the Tong family surname could not be stripped away, and the Tong family's influence could not be severed. Being assigned elsewhere was one thing, but taking office locally would create an immeasurable impact.
Whether Tong Shan wanted it or not, Yacheng would become the Tong family's private domain. Even if he could restrain himself, he could not control all the people in his clan.
He did not care about the opinions or reputations outsiders held, but this went against the Tong family's principles and way of doing things—share meals together, make money together, live life together, and negotiate everything with an open mind... No single person could eat all the food under heaven, nor could one person make all the money in the world. If no one else could make a living except you, how could everyone continue to tolerate you?
Why plant the seeds of ruin for a fleeting moment of glory?
After today, what the Tong family could gain was already more than enough; sacrifices had to be made.
What was gained was an alliance binding together all the large and small cities of Haizhou, along with an indispensable role as mediator. What was sacrificed was merely one person's prospects.
Nothing more.
"It really does you a disservice, then," Lyu Yingyue sighed softly.
Yet Tong Shan felt no regret, remaining as placid as ever. "In all things, one must never push to the absolute limit."
Lyu Yingyue finally halted her steps and turned to look at him, her expression stern. "The one who must never push to the absolute limit is the Tong family, not you. What the Path of Tianyuan values is that when Heaven offers and you do not take, you bring disaster upon yourself. Since you embody the strengths of both sides, you should understand the weaknesses of both sides. Tong Shan, advance when it is time to advance!"
"I understand." Tong Shan gave a self-deprecating smile. "Still, there's no rush for the moment, is there?"
"If you aren't in a rush now, you'll regret it sooner or later." Lyu Yingyue withdrew her gaze. "I'll speak with the elders of your family. Prepare for an external assignment."
"An external assignment?"
"The lords up top owe me too many favors and are fretting over how to balance the ledger. At a crux like this, if I make a minor request, they'll only be happier." Walking ahead, Lyu Yingyue asked casually, "Do you prefer Huangzhou? Or Shuzhou? If you want something more bustling, Dongcheng? Or something harder, Thousand Islands? Or perhaps hell mode directly—Mid-Continent?"
Tong Shan was taken aback. After pondering for a long while, he was just about to speak when he heard Lyu Yingyue's voice.
"Mid-Continent it is," she declared flatly. "A kid like you needs to be far away from home to amount to anything. It's time you saw the world."
Her tone remained calm, yet brooked no argument.
Tong Shan stood stunned for a long while, then let out a bitter chuckle and followed after her.
A headache was already beginning.
***
"Mid-Continent is pretty good, don't you think?"
Outside Yacheng, before the main entrance of the Tong family's ancestral residence, the air after the rain was exceptionally fresh.
The old man, still dressed in a tank top and loose shorts, sat in his rocking chair. With one hand, he skillfully brewed a classic concentrated brew, while with the other, he pushed the cannon forward on the board.
Check.
Across the board, the elderly woman's complexion turned increasingly gloomy, sullen as death.
"It's a bit chaotic, but if you only want a place to stay, plenty of city-states have room. With your talent for stirring up turmoil and drawing disasters, you should take to it like a fish to water. Stir up trouble or throw things into disarray as you please. But just one thing—"
Lifting his cup, the old man took a sip of the strong tea and glanced toward her face. "From now on, never let me see your lines appear outside Mid-Continent. If you can manage that, leave right now."
The old woman's expression turned even nastier. "Tong, I've already handed over the Mingguan legacy manual! I gave you centuries of seal registers! The Mayi lineage ends right here! I accept my loss, but won't you even give me a way out?!"
"Isn't your way out right under your feet, Magu?"
Tong Yuan chuckled, raising a finger to tap the only path of survival left for the enemy general on the board. "Scribes do not harm one another. Even if the Path of Aether sheds no blood, it can still take lives. With a single stroke, you tore open such a massive breach across my board. You didn't really think you could dust off your seat and scurry back to Dongcheng as if nothing had happened, did you? If I were the one who lost today, would you have allowed my entire family to leave Yacheng alive? Simply severing your lines and cutting off your legacy is already utmost benevolence, isn't it?"
The old woman's face was livid, veins bulging on the back of her hands.
"You walked your own path to a dead end. Don't throw away the face I'm giving you."
Tong Yuan raised a finger, pushing a thumb-sized teacup across the crowded board until it slid to a halt right before her.
"Have a taste," he said. "Once you're in Mid-Continent, you won't find tea this good anymore."
"..."
Amidst the dead silence, a trembling hand picked up the teacup and downed it in one gulp.
The cup slammed onto the board, cracking open with a fissure.
"Ah Ting, see our guest out."
At that, Tong Ting, who had been waiting for some time, stepped forward and gestured with a smile. "This way, Magu."
Magu said nothing more. She shot them one last venomous glare, turned, and strode away.
The two watched quietly until the figure vanished. Tong Ting suddenly said, "I can't help feeling that releasing the tiger back to the mountain isn't wise... Down the line in Mid-Continent, she might not fail to become a disaster."
Lying in the recliner, Tong Yuan shook his head with a regretful sigh. "A dying fox turns its head toward its native hill. She won't go to Mid-Continent."
Tong Ting fell silent at once.
If she refused to take the only path of survival, she couldn't blame the Tong family for doing things thoroughly.
The old man slowly rose to his feet. "I'm tired. I'm going to rest a bit. When Warden Lyu calls later, tell her I agreed and leave it to her arrangements."
Tong Ting was surprised, then asked, "What about this game of chess?"
The old man waved his hand without looking back. "It only has one or two moves left anyway. I'll leave it to you."
"..."
In the silence, Tong Ting looked down at the black pieces surrounded on all sides. After a long moment, he reached out, casually picked up a pawn that had crossed the river, and snapped it down.
Amidst the crisp echo, the final speck of dust settled.
Checkmate.
***
Six hours later, after passing through multiple transit points, Magu returned from Thousand Islands to Dongcheng. Stepping through the teleportation of the Eternal Gate, she arrived at the safe house she had prepared who knew how long ago.
In the silence, there was only the ticking of a clock.
Beyond the window came the bustling noise of crowds, right in the heart of the downtown district.
A vast pattern of qi linked the entire room, the apartment, the street, and even the park into a unified whole from the inside out, turning the safe house into a secluded haven standing apart from fate.
The instant she stepped into the safe house, the cracked knot in Magu's hand stopped crumbling. She could feel that the layers of fate tightening through the void had lost their target, dissipating without a sound.
"The Mingguan possesses two volumes, upper and lower. Did you think getting your hands on the lower volume would let you wipe out my entire lineage?"
Magu sneered, a sinister glint flashing in her eyes. "I'd like to see how that old bastard plans to end my life."
At that very moment, high in the heavens, amidst the gloom of the cosmos, a meteorite streaked through the void as if by pure coincidence. The meteorite, originally plunging toward the mortal world, suddenly seemed to lose its direction; its trajectory shifted, and it fractured into countless fragments that scattered in all directions.
Among them, one tiny piece traced a crooked arc through the vacuum... and slammed head-on into a speeding refrigerator hurtling along its path.
And so, the trajectory of that refrigerator underwent the tiniest, most bizarre deflection.
Plunging toward the earth.
*BOOM!*
Three minutes later, the House of An's patriarch, having just woken up, opened his eyes, glared upward, and roared in fury.
"Why the fuck does every piece of bullshit come to leech off me?!
"Doesn't Aether have its own damn tricks?!
"Shameless!"
***
Back in Yacheng, several hours earlier.
"We did everything we could to save him, but unfortunately..."
Inside a private ICU ward, the attending physician wore a troubled frown as he looked at the dying patient on the hospital bed. "The situation isn't good. He was poisoned for too long. Unless a miracle occurs, Mr. Xu may never wake up again."
*Beep—beep—beep—*
Amidst the low, crisp sounds, Lyu Yingyue lowered her gaze to look upon her old friend on the bed, sighing silently. "After all, we've been old friends for so many years... A dignified governor, the former Minister of Internal Affairs of the Federation, reduced to such a state. How truly pitiful."
She paused briefly, then suddenly asked, "Could I have a moment alone with him?"
The attending physician nodded, wishing for nothing more than to leave as quickly as possible. God only knew if he might overhear something lethal and end up 'committing suicide' with several bullets in his back.
Hearing her request, he hurried out immediately.
He even thoughtfully closed the door behind him.
With a crisp latch, only the two of them remained in the room.
Then, with an expressionless face, Lyu Yingyue reached into her pocket, pulled out a handgun, pressed it directly against Xu Chaoxian's forehead, and pulled the trigger without the slightest hesitation.
*BANG!*
A tremendous roar echoed through the room, followed immediately by shrill, piercing alarms blaring from the life-support machines.
Blood geysered from the wound, dyeing the pillow and bedsheets red.
In an instant, all breath left Xu Chaoxian.
Dead.
Immediately after, a shrill, agonizing scream rang out.
As if time were reversing, the blood swirled backward into the wound, the pulverized brain matter instantly restored to its original state, and at the very last moment, the still-warm bullet was squeezed out from the wound on his forehead.
The alarms stopped dead.
As if jolted by electricity, Xu Chaoxian shot upright, screaming in terror.
Wailing as though he had lost both parents.
"I rushed back as fast as I could, only to find you putting on this dead look... To dodge trouble, you actually took courting death to such an extreme. You really take the cake." Lyu Yingyue sighed. "Couldn't you show a bit of spine?"
"Are you out of your mind?! Lyu, what the hell are you doing?!" The withered old man was on the verge of tears, clutching his forehead, his eyes instantly turning bloodshot. "I don't have many lives left!"
Lyu Yingyue shook her head. "I've never seen such a pathetic Solomon."
"I was exiled ages ago! If I were still a Solomon, would you dare speak to me like that?!" Xu Chaoxian cried out in fury, snot and tears streaming down his face. "I worked hard my entire life, only for my life's plans to go down the drain in my old age! Kicked out of Midtown in disgrace, exiled to Yacheng, sidelined by others, having my dirt held over me to be pushed around at will... Why don't you just kill me?! Living has no point anyway!"
"Alright, hurry up and get to work." Lyu Yingyue's gun muzzle swept past his forehead with casual intent. "Once the job is done, I'll reimburse you one life."
Instantly, the tears vanished. Xu Chaoxian shook his head with solemn gravity:
"Two!"
"Just one. Cut the crap. If you want to turn things around, get to work. If you don't, rot to death in Yacheng for the rest of your life. When you die, you'll be carved onto Solomon's pillar of shame, with everyone pointing at you and saying you were the most disgraceful one..."
"Then tell me what the job is!" Xu Chaoxian glared at her with deep resentment. "What exactly do you want me to do? It can't be that you suffered a crushing defeat and want me to find you a way out, can it?"
"Quite the contrary. I won, and won big." Lyu Yingyue gave a regretful shrug. "It's just that, as an unfamiliar opportunist who placed the winning bet, it wouldn't look good for me to haggle further—it would make me seem unsightly. Rather than squabbling over pennies myself in futile bickering... it's better to let a certain useless old bastard put what little ability he has left to use."
With that, Lyu Yingyue tossed the bullet into Xu Chaoxian's hand. "Think it through carefully, old bastard. Go contact your former friends. I'm giving you a chance to hold your head high. Let me see just how much you can squeeze out of them."
"You're... leaving it all to me?"
Before excitement and thrill could set in, Xu Chaoxian grew suspicious first. He was no longer willing to believe in any pleasant surprises dished out by fate.
Especially when this 'surprise' had been delivered straight into his forehead inside an ICU ward, he grew all the more guarded.
"What? Unwilling?" Lyu Yingyue asked in return, looking at him with a faint smile. "If you still want to return to Midtown with your head held high... do you have any other choice besides me?"
In the silence, Xu Chaoxian stared at the face before him. After a long while, he offered a heartfelt expression of gratitude: "Lyu Yingyue, you really are a fucking piece of work."
"The feeling is mutual." Lyu Yingyue nodded, smiling as she bid farewell:
"Here's to a pleasant collaboration."
Chapter 380